The six-dimensional pictures of emperors of all dynasties were exposed, and the ancestors panicked

Chapter 768: Three Heroes of the Hunan Army and Chinese Princes

Chapter 768: Three Heroes of the Hunan Army and Chinese Princes
Ming Dynasty Jiajing Period
Zhu Houcong took a look at the "Guangyu Tu·Haiyun Tu" in his hand

"Today, the canal is becoming more and more silted up, and transporting grain on the canal is becoming more and more difficult."

"The debate between sea transport and canal transport continues. The digging of the Jiaolai River, a transit method that shortens the sea transport journey, has become a compromise solution."

Zhu Houcong glanced at Luo Hongxian who was standing in front of him with neither arrogance nor servility.

I took another look at the course of Jiaolai New River on the map.

The river is connected to the shipping route, forming a route that does not require detours around the Shandong Peninsula.

In this way, a channel for transporting materials between the north and the south can be realized.

"You are not going to be a government official anymore."

"Why are you offering the book today?"

Luo Hong was silent for a moment, then said slowly:
"Because the Ming Dynasty still has a way to turn the tide."

"With your Majesty's current strength, opening a new river can save the country money."

Zhu Houcong narrowed his eyes slightly and threw the feng shui map onto the table.

"Do you treat me as a coolie?"

Luo Hongxian lowered his head slightly.

"The common people don't dare."

Zhu Houcong snorted coldly, then picked up the feng shui map, stood up and left.

"Report to the Ministry of Revenue."

“Plan the river opening.”

"Retreat."

……

[The salt law of the Qing Dynasty was mostly based on the system of the Ming Dynasty. Each province followed the Gang method to sell salt, recruit merchants to identify salt-producing areas, and guide them to set up taxes. The Ministry of Salt Affairs issued the tax, so that all the profits of the salt industry went to the salt merchants.]

[Salt merchants exploited the people at every level, and officials and gentry in each province viewed the salt business as a source of profit, and some used the excuse of doing official business to corrupt the government and take the fees for themselves.]

[Because of the long-standing bad habits, the long-standing bad habits became precedents, resulting in the flood of privately-owned salt and the poor sales of official salt, causing great hardship for the country and the people.]

【During the reign of Emperor Daoguang, the salt industry was in trouble and declining, and the situation became increasingly serious. At that time, the salt from Lianghuai had the largest sales area, and merchants were exhausted and tax-scarce, and the accumulated problems were the most serious.】

……

Ming Dynasty and Zhengde Period
Zhu Houzhao sat up slightly.

"From this point of view, the salt system has been changed?"

Zhu Houcong opened the notebook and dipped it in ink.

Be ready to start copying.

……

Ming Dynasty Wanli Period
"The establishment of the Gangyan system strengthened the salt merchants' monopoly on the salt industry, and Yangzhou salt merchants basically monopolized the transportation and sales of Lianghuai sea salt."

Zhang Juzheng sighed slightly and said:

"The combination of officials and businessmen can make them rich enough to rival a country."

"Daoguang can change this matter, but he cannot change the overall situation of the world."

The young emperor thought of Qianlong and said to Zhang Juzheng:

"Because the gentleman is kind-hearted."

Zhang Juzheng remained silent.

It's not that I'm kind.

Even if I say it, it doesn't count.

……

[In the tenth year of Emperor Daoguang's reign (1830), Tao Shu, the governor-general of Liangjiang, repeatedly pointed out the long-standing problems in the Huai salt industry and requested that unnecessary expenses be reduced and subsidies be suspended.]

Soon, Emperor Daoguang approved the implementation of measures to reform the salt administration, abolishing the Lianghuai salt administration and transferring the salt affairs to the Governor-General of Liangjiang, who had the sole power. In the 1833th year of Daoguang's reign (), the salt ticket system was promoted and implemented.

[The ticket system is to set up a tax collection office at a suitable location in the market area. ]

[No matter who you are, as long as you pay taxes according to regulations, you can get a ticket to transport salt and sell it within a limited geographical area and within a specified period.]

【The salt ticket system eliminated the disadvantages of monopolizing salt business and changed the situation of salt merchants monopolizing salt profits. The state could benefit from turning private enterprises into government-owned enterprises. Since the procedures of the salt ticket system were simple, officials had no reason to interfere, and the cost was reduced, merchants therefore competed to operate.】

[The ticket salt system was first implemented in 1832 counties and prefectures in the northern region of Junggar in the th year of Emperor Daoguang’s reign (). The effect was very significant. In less than four months, more than yin (one yin is jin) of salt was sold out.]

【After the ticket salt system was widely implemented, private salt was no longer prohibited, official salt was sold without hindrance, and the salt tax became a major source of national fiscal revenue.】

【Since the salt bill system was effective, the public opinion at the time believed that changing to the salt bill system was a good way to remedy the problem.】

[Evaluation B level, three points]

……

{In fact, the ticket system at this time was close to the taxation system, and the miscellaneous taxes and lijin collected according to the amount were equivalent to transaction taxes.}
{The monopoly of the original salt merchants was thus broken, and the competitiveness of the salt industry was strengthened.}
{The new system greatly improved the efficiency of salt industry operations, the quality of salt improved, the price dropped, and the national income increased rapidly.}
{Franchise system, similar to the current tobacco industry.}
{Monopoly leads to the concentration of profits in the hands of a few people. Efficiency is reduced, and monopoly merchants take most of the profits, while the empire and the people do not benefit.}
{Finally, we must break up such monopolies, stimulate vitality, and transfer profits to the state.}
{The ticket salt system was effective and beneficial to the country and the people, but it was opposed by various forces that had interests related to the previous salt system. As a result, Emperor Daoguang encountered many obstacles in promoting the ticket salt system, and finally had to abandon the reform of the salt policy halfway.}
{The reign of Emperor Daoguang was truly full of contradictions.}
{Frugality and diligence coexist with incompetence in governing the country, and national integrity is intertwined with compromise and concession.}
{It must be said that Emperor Daoguang was a conservative ruler with good conduct but mediocre qualifications. His moral virtues could not cover up the profound negative impact brought about by historical limitations.}
{If it were in ancient times, before Qianlong, Daoguang would definitely be considered a diligent model worker. Unfortunately, he was born in the wrong era.}
{The decline of the Qing Dynasty was systemic and could not be changed by one person.}
{It is the general trend.}
……

The period of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty
"The Book of Changes contains the idea of being neutral and upright."

Liu Heng rolled up his sleeves and assembled the curved plow brought by Zhili Neishi with his bare hands.

"If you are both on the right track and correct, you will definitely achieve success, and therefore receive great blessings."

"Even if Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong were placed in the era of Daoguang, they would not necessarily be much better than him."

"Because that is an era that requires the whole world to change from scratch."

"Even though Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong were all great emperors, it doesn't mean they could keep up with the development of the world during the Daoguang era, which was already behind the reforms."

Liu Qi listened to it all, but felt that it was the same as if he hadn't heard anything, so he lowered his head and asked:

"I don't know if this curved plow is really that easy to use."

Liu Heng: …

Play the piano on the cow.

……

The period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty
Let’s not talk about whether the general trend is the general trend or not.

Liu Che was not really interested in these things that happened 1,800 years later.

First, getting angry after watching too much will not help.

Second, the big man is not yet able to reach that level.

"Industry can be a long-term national policy."

“But it’s been a long time.”

"Salt is a real thing."

He didn't forget the salt merchants.

The ticket salt system abolished the extortion of extra fees and reduced many intermediate links in transportation and sales, which greatly reduced the cost of official salt. With the reduction of costs, the price of official salt will also drop significantly.

As long as the price of official salt does not exceed the purchasing power of the people, even if its price is slightly higher than that of private salt, its dominant position in the salt market will not be affected by private salt.

Because for ordinary people, buying private salt does involve certain risks.

Since the risk cost of buying smuggled salt is greater than the possible benefits of buying smuggled salt.

Ordinary people are unlikely to choose private salt.

This means that private salt may lose its price advantage in the competition.

At the same time, the Salt Ticket Regulations also stipulated that anyone could apply for a salt ticket as long as they paid taxes according to the regulations.

As a result, many salt smugglers will switch to selling salt.

"You kill two birds with one stone."

Liu Che smiled.

……

｛Tao Shu's salt policy reform had little impact on the overall decline of the Qing Dynasty during the Jiaqing and Daoguang periods, but the rise of the Han gentry group behind the reform determined the development of the late Qing Dynasty.｝
｛Tao Shu was from Hunan. As he became more successful in his career, a large number of Hunanese figures also stepped onto the historical stage.｝
｛Tao Shu had a small circle of like-minded Han scholars, including Lin Zexu, Wei Yuan, He Changling, Tang Jian and others.｝
{Except Lin Zexu who was from Fujian, all the others were from Hunan. He Changling served as the governor of Jiangsu and the governor of Shandong in the early years of Emperor Daoguang. During this period, he took a fancy to a young Hunan scholar and sponsored him to study and go to Beijing to take the imperial examination. This man was Zeng Guofan. }
{In the 1818rd year of Jiaqing (), Tao Shu, who was an official in the central government, visited Yiyang, Hunan, and visited his old friend Hu Dayuan, the former governor of Guizhou and the academician, who was retired at home. When he saw Hu Dayuan's eight-year-old son, he determined that he was talented and would become a great man, so he immediately decided to marry his young daughter to him.}
{In the 1839th year of Emperor Daoguang's reign (), the two families officially married. Tao Shu asked a man named Hu Linyi to marry into his family and study.}
{In the 1837th year of Emperor Daoguang’s reign (), Tao Shu, who had served as the Governor-General of Liangjiang for many years and was famous for his salt policy reform, was on his way home to visit his relatives when he passed by Liling, Hunan. He saw a pair of couplets that were very well written and asked the county magistrate to find the author of the couplet, who turned out to be a -year-old country scholar.}
{When he first saw her, he was struck by her beauty. Tao Shu said to him: Your future achievements will definitely surpass mine. Later, he made her his aide, introduced her to Lin Zexu and others, and even arranged for his seven-year-old son to marry her daughter, and recognized her as a relative. This person was called Zuo Zongtang.}
｛Zeng Guofan, Hu Linyi, and Zuo Zongtang, these three people will play the leading roles in the future war that will determine the fate of the Qing Dynasty, and are known as the "Three Heroes of the Hunan Army".｝
{It will also have a profound impact on the development of Chinese history until today.}
{This Bole is really amazing.}
……

Qing Dynasty, Jiaqing Period
Jiaqing looked at Mian Ning, thoughtfully.

"The Three Heroes of the Hunan Army..."

Hunan Army...where did the Hunan Army come from?

Local militia?

Isn’t this nonsense!

but……

Jiaqing thought of the four words "Taiping Heavenly Kingdom".

It is probably equivalent to the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

"The three heroes are good."

Jiaqing patted Mian Ning on the shoulder, and seeing the other party's unexpected expression, he said happily:

"I will accept it with pleasure!"

Mian Ning pulled the corner of his mouth, smiling:

"As long as you are happy, Ama."

"But don't forget to hurt Zhongyong and help the seedlings grow faster."

Jiaqing's face froze.

...Can’t...right?

……

Qing Dynasty, Daoguang Period
"Isn't this getting better?"

Daoguang slammed the imperial desk.

He didn't know who Zuo Zongtang and Hu Linyi were.

Zeng Guofan knew it!
Ugly and impressive!
When he had just taken up the post of Hanlin, I made a comment: Although he may not look elegant, he can be of great use!
Indeed, I have good vision.

Daoguang originally wanted to ask Zeng Guofan to come over.

But after thinking it over, he decided to hold off for now.

I can't run away anyway, so I'll see what happens next before making any arrangements!

……

[Diplomatic Strategy: In addition to the Treaty of Nanjing, the Treaty of Wangxia, and the Treaty of Huangpu, there is also the loss of Macau. ]

[Macau is a peninsula in Zhongshan County, Guangdong Province. During the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty, the Portuguese bribed local officials with an annual "land rent" of 1,000 taels and occupied it privately. They built fortresses, set up docks, set up trading houses, and established a government. They took the long-term leave and took over the master's position.]

[The Qing Dynasty recognized the fait accompli and continued to collect 1,000 taels of land rent from Portugal. In the 30th year of Emperor Kangxi’s reign, the rent was reduced to 600 taels in accordance with the Portuguese’s request. Shortly thereafter, it was further reduced to 500 taels.]

[However, neither the Ming Dynasty nor the Qing Dynasty formally ceded Macau to Portugal.]

【Therefore, Macau has always been Chinese territory in legal terms, although in fact it has a bit of "co-governance between China and Portugal". 】

[After the signing of the Treaty of Nanjing and the Sino-British Treaty of the Five Ports, the Portuguese authorities in Macau asked Qiying to "exempt rent and expand the territory", but Qiying refused.]

[The Portuguese authorities also requested that they be exempted from obtaining a license to build houses, reduce ship taxes and cargo taxes, and allow Portuguese people to go to the five ports to do business, but Qiying agreed.]

[Afterwards, the Treaty of Humen, the Treaty of Wangxia, and the Treaty of Huangpu were signed one after another, and the Portuguese authorities looked down on the Qing court even more.]

【After being colonized by Britain, Hong Kong became more and more prosperous as a free port without tariffs, making Macau look dwarfed by it. 】

[On February 1849, 3 (March 5, ), the Portuguese governor of Macau, Cao Malilou, announced that Macau had been changed by the Portuguese government into a free port and no "foreign" customs would be allowed to continue to exist in Macau.]

[The Portuguese no longer paid land rent in Macau, and instead levied land tax on the Chinese.]

[Evaluation level E·Zero points]

……

{It was also from the reign of Emperor Daoguang that the tributary system was severely impacted by Western countries, and previous diplomatic ideas also evolved against the backdrop of the "Westernization of Eastward Learning" and the invasion of modern Western colonial forces.}
｛I don't understand, please speak in human language.｝
{It was after the Opium War that the Chinese intellectual community published a large number of works on frontier history and geography, world history and geography, and travelogues, which changed the spatial concept guided by the ancient world view.}
{Some of these works study China's neighboring countries, some study European countries, and some study the entire world. They provide a fairly complete description of the world situation during that period.}
{To a certain extent, the concept of "Tianxia" is based on modern geographical knowledge, roughly depicting a civilization system that is very different from Chinese traditional culture.}
{Chinese intellectual circles gradually accepted Western historical and geographical knowledge and the new spatial concepts associated with it, and began to gradually move beyond the old barriers of the world view.}
{By the end of the Xianfeng period, the traditional, far-reaching "world" space gradually gave way to the limited, fixed-boundary "national" space.}
{The modern view of space not only provides a new perspective for observing the world, but also provides the conceptual basis for late China's transformation into a modern nation-state.}
{The modern concept of space has transformed the ancient "world state" into a modern sovereign state "within a limited geographical area, with a homogeneous culture and common or similar blood ties."}
……

Great Qin.

"What do you mean?"

Ying Zheng frowned instantly.

"Using the books of foreigners to annotate one's own classics?"

"They just admitted it like that? They bowed their heads?"

Liu Bang stroked his beard and said thoughtfully:

"This is to transform the world into a country, hoping to regain the victory of the 'country' from the failure of the world."

Ying Zheng raised his eyebrows.

"You mean...from the great unification...back to the feudal states?"

Liu Bang curled his lips and muttered:

"With the Qing Dynasty being beaten like this, why don't they take a step back?"

"Anyway, there are examples, but they are just a bit larger in scope."